Elizabeth MacArthur: A Life at the Edge of the World

Elizabeth MacArthur: A Life at the Edge of the World

In 1788 a young woman raised in an English village married a handsome, haughty and penniless army officer. In an Austen novel that would be the end of the story, but for the real-life woman who became an Australian farming entrepreneur, it was just the beginning. John Macarthur is credited with establishing the Australian wool industry and featured on the two-dollar note, but it was Elizabeth who managed their holdings - while dealing with the results of John's manias: duels, quarrels, court cases, a military coup, long absences overseas, grandiose construction projects and, finally, his descent into insanity.

Author description

Michelle Scott Tucker owns and operates a management consulting company, and lives on a small farm in regional Victoria with her husband and children. Elizabeth Macarthur is her first book.